Iceless refrigerator



C. L. KIK.

ICELESS REFRIGERATOR.

APPLICATION FILED IAY 20. 1920.

FIG./.

w 5 Y. My? A w m z h 2 N 6 I A BY CHARLESLJf/K 1 ATTYS.

C. L. KIK.

IGELESS REFRIGERATOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 20, 1920.

1,422,364. Patented July 11, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FIG. 6. F/6.7.

INVENTOR CHARLES L. lfur CHARLES L. KIK, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

ICELESS REFRIGERATOR.

Specification of'Letters- Patent.

Patented July 11, 1922.

Application filed May 20, 1920. Serial No. .3 82,773.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES L. KIK, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Los.

- herein.

Figure l is a perspective of the front of "the complete refrigerator.

Fig. 2 is a central-transverse vertical sec tion on a plane between the front and back walls.

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section on a lane between the side walls.

ig. 4 is a sectional view showing details of construction adjacent one of the top corners of the refrigerator.

Fig. 5 is a detail horizontal section on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective of a fragment of the wall structure of the inner chamber.

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the weight member for the bottom of the capillary curtain or wall.

Fig. 8 is a perspective showing the pan having a series of supporting devices extending upwardly above its edge to receive the capillary curtain.

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view showin the curtain arranged thereon.

Fhe refrigerator comprises an exterior casing or box of any suitable material, proportion and form of construction, the easing comprising side panel members 2, a back panel member 3 and a preferably hollow front door i hinged or otherwise connected at 5-5 of one of the corners of the casing. The side and back panels are provided with large openings or windows as at 6 and the bottom 7 of the casing forms a pan or re ceiver for such water as may collect in the bottom of the casing, this water being in trodnced into the bottom pan 7 by reason of the use of water as a cooling agent to maintain a temperature interior of the cas ing lower than the exterior atmospheric tern opening 6, as clearly shown in Fig. 5

perature. Such excess or collected water may be drained as required by a drain pipe or valve 8, Fig. 3. The top of the casing is prov ded preferably with a removable cover 9 that is shown as provided with downturnedflanges 10 making a snug fit around the top edge of the casing structure.

Onc of the features of my invention'consists in means for the form of reticulated or screen panels 11 adapted to be removably mounted on the inner faces of the .sideaml back walls of the casing,..the edges of the windows of the casing walls being provided with suitable guide means, as for instance by turnin back the material, .as metal, to form a channel-like guide way 12 alongcpposite parallel vertical edges of thewindow To determine the position of the remo zable screen or foraminous panel 11, theedge of which is mounted or formed with ,a rigid frame 11', the latter has connected to iitlat suitable pointsalmig its top edge upwardly extending hooks 13 designed .to be hung over the upper ed e of the respective back or side panel mem. er.

Within the exterior casing thus formed there is mounted or arranged an inner chamber consisting of asubstantially rectangular wall structure the verticalpanels of which are indicated at 14, and these panels ars preferably reticulated as for instance .by havin numerous perforations 1510f desired size t rou bout the area of the panelsthus enabling tie free circulation of air into and out of the interior chamber formedby the walls 14. Preferably the front wallof this chamber is left 0 I en and is co-extensivewith the area of the Front doorwhich-fits in,an inturned flange 4' provided therefor in the front of the casing.

The inner chamber is preferably made of sheet metal perforated as above described and is bent on vertical lines to form the corners at each of which there is provided a downwardly extending lug 16 supporting the inner chamber with its lower edges above the bottom of the pan 7, and the lower horizontal edges of the side and back walls of the inner chamber are shown as turned or'bent upwardly at 18 to form little shelves on which rest the bottom 19 of the inner chamber. One or more adjustable intermediate shelves may be arranged at any desired height or heights in the inner chamber 14 and the shelf or shelves are hung removably on ilclarhable hangers or books 2i having upwardly and outwardly turned ends 22 cugaging through the difl'erent apertures 15 as may be desired according to the position of the intermediate shelf or shelves 21. The lower ends of these hooks 21. extend inwardly under the shelf 20. as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

The top of the chamber 14 is open and the top edges of the walls thereof are turned outwardly as at 23 and disposed thereon is a removable water vessel 24- of suitable depth and co-extensivc with the plan of the opening of the top of the chamber 14. This pan 24has outwardly turned flanges 25 resting on the flange 23 at the top of the chamber 14.

For the purpose of securing the cooling effect in the interior of the refrigerator a curtain or capillary wall or wall structure is provided that is suspended in an intermediate position in the space between the outer casing walls and the inner chamber walls, as clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3, and this capillary wall of curtain comprises a sheet of fibrous or woven material as 26 of suitable length and width and is set in vertical planes passing around theinner chamber except at the front portion thereof where the door 4 extends in across the intervening space.

This curtain 26 is of such length as to have its upper end folded inwardly over the top supporting flange 25 of the vessel and hang well down into the same as at 27 to be well immersed in water that may be supplied thereto as by a faucet 28 connected to a sup ply pipe 29. The outwardly directed flange 25 of the top of the vessel serves to properly position the vertical panels or wall-like portions of the curtain 26 over the outer edge of which it hangs freely down as shown, and the cloth may be temporarily fastened against dislodg'ment as by suitable fasteners 30 paming through the flanges 25 and 23 at the top of the inner chamber. These fasteners are preferably made of inexpensive material and may, and preferably do. consist of the ordinary well known type of paper fasteners because of their inexpensive character.

In action of the device when water is supplied to the upper vessel 24 from the supply means 28 to a suitable degree the capillary property of the fabric or fibrous wall or curtain 26 causes the water to creep upwardly from the pan 24 and outwardly and dowir \vardly entirely saturating the capillary wall 26. and thi wall being extended to the bottom and enterinp the pan 7 will (lischarge such excess of water as may be thus drawn from the supply vessel 21 into the pan this being (lPlPl'll'llHQIl by atmospheric conditions.

It is desirable. to pi-i'iyidc for the arrange ment of the flexible or pliant capillary wall 26 with facility and to maintain it in a sufficiently taut condition as to take out undesirable folds and prevent it from contacting with the adjacent surfaces of the spaced walls, and for that purpose the lower end of the curtain 26 is weighted. This weight may comprise a U-shaped member 26 shown in plan in Fig. 7 that may be stitched or otherwise suitably connected to the bottom edge of the curtain 26. This weight member or frame 26 is formed to conform to the plan of the space between the inner and outer walls and to hold the curtain in an intermediate position therein and substantially vertically below the edges of the flanges 23-25.

The device thus described may be located as exigency or convenience may determine upon any suitable support and, if desired, it may be su ended within convenient reach by the attailiment of appropriate suspended devices to a set of lugs or ears 33 that are provided adjacent the upper end of the easing 2 and which are outwardly deflected as clearly shown in Fig. 1 to provide clearance for the application of the cover 9. These brackets or so nding lugs 33 may be perforated as at 33 for the attachment of wires or other suitable and durable fastening means.

For the purpose of providing for the maximum capillary efficiency of the curtain or wall 26, I prefer to provide for the upper edge of the side walls of the vessel 24 a series of supporting devices preferably having rounded upper surfaces 35 these extending inwardly and outwardly from the vertical plane of the walls of the vessel 24, so that when the capillary cloth 26 is draped over the supporting devices 35 the body portions of the fabric 26 is maintained entirely out of contact with the inside surface of the ves- S81 and with the outside surface of contiguous walls.

These supporting means may be conven iently and inexpensively formed of strips of material of suitable width folded into a loop or bight with the ends riveted or otherwise secured on opposite sides of the vessel wall as at 35: a series of these supporting devices 35 being placed at suitable intervals along the top edge of the vessel walls. k

Various changes may be made without dcparting from the spirit of my invention as claimed.

I claim:

1. In an icele s refrigerator. an outer cas in; having openings and guide means for allowing screens to be slidably mounted to cover said openings. said means comprising a portion of the edges of said openings heal inwardly and thence laterally from the same. said inwardly bent portions forming the side of the guide. the. lateral portion the back.

and the remaining portions of the edges of said openings forming the front of said ides.

2. In an iceless refrigerator, an outer casing having openings, screens mounted to cover said openings, means for detachably supporting said screens to said casing, said means comp-rising strap hooks fastened to said screens and adapted to engage the top edge of said casing so as to allow said screen to be free at its lower end.

3. In an iceless refrigerator, a sheet metal wall having an opening, the metal at the sides of the opening bein bent upon itself and thence laterally and tienoe reversely to form guide Ways, a framed screen inserted downwardly into the guide ways to cover the opening, and hooks extending upwardly from the screen and over the edge of the wall so as to support the screen.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

CHARLES L. KIK. 

